The purpose of this study is to determine the possible etiological factors of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) in North-Eastern Hungary. The medical records of 119 randomly selected patients with OSCC admitted to the Department of Maxillofacial Surgery of the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Debrecen were reviewed. The following risk factors were investigated: tobacco and alcohol consumption, dental status, rural vs. urban residence, and high risk HPV infection. The presence of HPV DNA has been evaluated by polymerase chain reaction from the tissue samples. Results were correlated with clinical data. At the time of diagnosis 65.5 percent of the patients were smokers. Under the age of 45 the rate was 86.4%. Smoking significantly correlated with younger age, male gender, advanced clinical stages and alcohol consumption. The majority of the patients (75.5%) consumed alcohol, 41.1% regularly over the acceptable range. Drinking habit significantly correlated with younger age, male gender and tumor site (gingiva, retromolar region, tongue). HR-HPV types were detected in 42.8% of samples tested. HPV DNA presence was not related to gender, clinical stage, histological grade or other risk factors. Authors found weak correlation between HR-HPV positivity, younger patient age and better 5-year survival rate. The dental status was acceptable only in 12.6 percent of the cases. There was a correlation between dental status and age, smoking and drinking habits. No significant urban-rural differences were found. In the study population the most important risk factor for developing oral cancer is tobacco smoking followed by alcohol consumption. Avoidance of tobacco smoking and a reduced amount of alcohol, together with healthy nutrition and regular dental care should be emphasized.